The Day the Future Stood in Doubt
by Ufoseeker
Summary: Taking place in the year 3051, a group known as the D.T.F. has plans to erase the existence of their Utopia. In order to do that, they must break up the people responsible for it: Leela and Fry! My first time posting. Please be gentle! R&R please!


THE DAY THE FUTURE STOOD IN DOUBT  ****

THE DAY THE FUTURE STOOD IN DOUBT

By Allen

There were many chairs situated around the long table in the dim lit room. Each seat is filled with a person shrouded in equally dark robes. They were all looking at the figure sitting at the head of the table. He is surrounded by shadows so you can't see his face. The year is 3051 and it is a golden age for Earth and the universe alike. It was, for all intents and purposes, a utopia. The members sitting at the table didn't quite see it that way. They, like their leader, were hell-bent on destroying this future.

The leader pushed a button on the control panel, located on the table, and a giant screen was lowered down. The leader rose to speak "My friends, we have all gathered together because we are sick of this future. You have come to me because I have a way of preventing it. We must eliminate the cause of this future. We must eliminate THEM!" Upon saying these words, a picture flashed onto the screen showing Fry and Leela holding hands. The table erupted into cheers and hollers.

The leader again spoke to his public. "As we all know, it is Leela who will ultimately decide the future. Therefore it is clear that we must separate the two and send a new man into Leela's life. That man will be one of us and when a relationship is cemented, we shall control the deciding factor of the future, Leela's child!" More cheers erupt from the table. The leader continued to reveal his heinous plan to the group. "Using a time machine is out of the question since the last blueprints were destroyed. Instead, we will use a time phone that will allow us to speak to people in the past to set our plan in motion." He dialed a number and spoke to the operator, "Hello, I need the number for a Michelle Jenkins."

Across town, another shadowy figure watches his spy camera that he placed in the Destroyers of the Future meeting room. "I see that the D.T.F. has set the plan in motion," he said, "I would send back a champion to protect them, but because of budget cutbacks, I'll have to settle for that stupid robot to protect them." He held up a small disk and inserted into a computer that would send it through time and download it into the robot. "The program only warns him, the rest is up to him. We're doomed!"

Leela was exhausted after a hard day in the year 3001. She sat up thinking about the day's events, but mostly she thought about Fry. Ah, Fry, the one person in this world that had her heart and he didn't even know it. She had been dropping subtle hints, but Fry was too stupid to pick them up. She didn't know precisely why she had fallen for him; after all, he was below her intelligence. Leela suspected, however, that the idiocy was just a mask so people would leave him alone. She would tell him one day how she felt, one day.

Fry was lying in his bed in Bender's closet, thinking about Leela. He really liked her. _I had her for a minute when I had worms, then lost her when I had to find where my heart was. Maybe I should have kept them, its not like they were changing how I felt._ His train of thought was interrupted by a knock at the door. It was Bender and he was surprisingly scared. "Did you have that dream again?" Fry asked. 

Bender nodded, "It's getting worse, its like I'm receiving a message I'm supposed to give somebody." For the past few weeks, Bender had been having horrid visions of the future. In these visions, all robots were destroyed and used as scrap metal to build some weapon. Then there was the occasional nice vision, in which there was beer for all the robots and they thrived.

Fry was getting exhausted running the deliveries. The next and last delivery for the day was for The Applied Cryogenics Lab. Since they couldn't use the ship, they made the trip on foot. While Leela made the delivery, Fry and Bender looked at all the frozen people. Bender looked in one of the tubes and screamed. Fry ran to him asking if he was all right. Bender just stammered and pointed, saying "This woman brings doom to all robots." Fry looked in the tube and saw Michelle Jenkins, his old girlfriend. She was due to wake up in five minutes.

"How can my old girlfriend bring doom to anything?" Fry asked. 

"Her face appears in the bad dream I keep having and a message comes with it. I think it said _Protect your friend. He is the key to the door. _I never quite get it," Benderexplained. The cryo-chamber opened and Michelle awoke from her 1,000 years sleep. 

"Hello Fry, how nice to see you again!" she said. Fry backed away from her "Michelle, just so you know, I'm in love with someone else," he managed to stammer out. "What difference does that make? My job is to keep you away from her at all costs," she said with a delightful smile on her face.

Fry had a look of shock on his face. "What do you mean keep me away from her?" he asked angrily. 

"Just what I said, now come along quietly and do what I tell you or el--." 

She never finished because Bender had injected a tranquilizer into her. Fry looked confused because Bender would rather kill a human than help one, unless they paid. Bender broke him from his train of thought with "Come on, you moron, let's go! That tranquilizer won't last forever."

As they ran from the building and found a hiding place, Bender began to explain what was going on. "The dreams I've been having started to make sense after Michelle threatened you. It's a warning from the future, as well as an explanation from your son! I have to get this out before the program erases itself. Michelle is part of a plot to destroy a future created by you and Leela. Your DNA mixed with hers created a super-intelligent child with powers that are indescribable. There is a catch though. When the child was born, it was determined that it only happened because she willingly opened her heart to you. The goodness that is in your souls allowed your son to create a utopia and everyone is happy. The radical group known as The Destroyers of the Future or D.T.F. for short, think that by sending a bad soul to impregnate Leela, they will create the ultimate form of evil." 

Bender continued his warning. "Listen to me Fry, because of the nature of this program, I will be destroyed. Heed my warning or robots will die. You must not tell Leela any of this. Her decision must be unhindered or the future will not come to be. It's one of those side effects of her DNA. Now my friend, I must leave you." He shuts down, permanently.

Fry is finally allowed time for this to sink in. He can't believe it, he and Leela are the only hope for the future? ! He looks down at Bender and starts to cry. Then, remembering times before, he ejected Bender's Brain. He hoped he could still save him. It was a shame he couldn't tell Leela about the future. Then he felt something jab him that told him he wouldn't get to. It was a laser gun.

"Trying to run away?" the all too familiar voice said. "The guy said at all costs, but first I have to seal the deal. Now move!" she said. Michelle walked beside him with the gun pointed at his back. It looked like she was hanging on to him, which was exactly the way she wanted it. 

Fry's mind was in a spin. _What is she going to do with me? I have a feeling I already know. Poor Leela, I wonder what's happening to her? I'm so worried. _Behind them, someone was taking pictures.

Leela heard a knock at the door. When she opened it, she became angry, "What are YOU doing here?" she asked. There stood Zapp Brannigan, self-proclaimed ladies' man and first class jerk. 

"Now Leela, I know we've had our difficulties in the past, but I was hoping to let bygones be bygones and start over!" he pleaded. 

"Zapp, I know this is a scheme to get me back in bed. I was drunk, you were drunk, and both of us probably don't even remember it. Go home Zapp!" she said. 

"You really like that guy, don't you?" Zapp asked. 

"It's none of your business!" she snapped. 

"Yet I went through all this trouble to get proof that he doesn't love you!" he said bringing out a large yellow envelope.

Leela stared at the photographs, not believing what she saw. The pictures were of Fry and Michelle walking together. "Photos can be faked, Zapp," she said. 

"I had a feeling you'd say that, but look, isn't that them now?" he asked, pointing out the window. Leela rushed to the window in time to see Fry and Michelle kissing. She turned away dejectedly. "I'm sorry you had to learn the hard way, allow me to make up for it, by buying you dinner. I promise I'll be on my best behavior, in fact from now that night never happened, as far as I am concerned." Leela sadly accepted the invitation and walked out the door with Zapp. 

Fry watched them go off together as he tried to yell out Leela's name, but Michelle clamped her hand over his mouth. "Well, now that that's done, I'll get rid of you permanently and go collect my money."

Fry thought as quickly as he could. "Wait Michelle, doesn't a dying man deserve a last request?" he asked. 

"Okay, what's your last request?" Michelle inquired. 

"I want to kiss you again, without the laser on my back, like old times." Michelle agreed to this and relinquished her hold on the gun slightly, so she could kiss him more easily. That was all Fry needed. He snatched the gun from Michelle and held her at gunpoint. "Now, it's your turn to move." He forced her into the cryogenics lab and told her to get in the tube. 

"Fry, don't do this! I was just kidding, I wasn't going to kill you!" Michelle protested. 

"Ha, ha" laughed Fry sarcastically. He pushed her in and slammed the door shut. He reached over to the keypad and set it to reopen in another 1,000 years. He then watched as Michelle was frozen with a panicked look on her face. Now, all that was left to do was rescue the woman he loved.

Leela sat across from Zapp at the small café table. She still looked very sad. Zapp tried to cheer her up. "Come on Leela, he was a scum bag, you have to move on." At that moment, a cell phone rang. "Excuse me Leela, while I take this call." She nodded and he ran into a storage room. "This had BETTER be important, I'm just getting through to Leela!" he whispered. 

"Its me, I'm calling to start plan "B". You know what to do," said the deep voice. 

"I use the memory eraser to wipe out her bad experience with me and return her to the state where she thought me an impressive person!" answered Zapp. 

"Excellent, let nothing and no one interfere with the plan!" boomed the deep voice. 

Leela was wondering what was keeping Zapp. She didn't really care; she had just come for the free meal. She heard a knock on the window and saw that it was Fry. She turned away angrily. "Come on Leela, I have a feeling we don't have much time! I can't explain, but you're in danger." Fry protested. Leela pretended not to hear him. Fry saw Zapp coming back. He had to get Leela away from him. This feeling was even more heightened when he saw him point something at her and shoot. Leela was paralyzed and Zapp moved towards the table to complete the plan. Fry's mind suddenly switched to instinct as he smashed the window, grabbed the stupefied Leela, and ran.

Fry ran as fast as he could, trying to find a hiding place. He knew he and Leela, being pursued by Zapp, couldn't hide for long on Earth. Seeing the Planet Express building gave him an idea. He ran inside and locked the door. He then entered the ship, trying to remember how Leela drove it. When he thought he had the answer, he carefully placed the stupefied Leela into a seat and buckled her in. He took the captain's seat, surveying the controls and saw it looked like a controller pad for the Nintendo 3000. He was able to start the ship and take off just as Zapp arrived. 

Fry wasn't sure where he was going, but at least they were safe for now. He waited until he was a few light years from the planet, before stopping and waiting for Leela to wake. She finally jolted from her mindless stupor a few minutes afterwards. "Fry, where the hell am I?" she demanded to know. She looked around, recognizing the ship. "Fry, are we in space?' she asked. Fry nodded in the affirmative. Leela was mad and started to scream at him until she was hoarse. 

Fry just took it in stride. "Now that you're done screaming, do you think you could listen to me?" he asked. When Leela nodded, he proceeded to speak. 

"First of all, Leela, I've had a much worse day than you have. I should probably start by saying that my old girlfriend tried to kill me. Bender, except for his brain, is dead. He gave me a warning about the future, which for some strange reason I can't tell you about. The kiss you saw was just to make you jealous. I didn't want to, but a girl with a laser gun in her hand has a strange effect on me, especially when she's pointing it at me!" Fry stopped to allow this to sink in. 

Leela stared at him in disbelieving shock. "Zapp showed me pictures of you and that girl walking together!" she protested. 

"Leela, since when do you believe that jerk over your best friend? Zapp blasted you with some sort of laser that prompted me to grab you. You just woke up 15 minutes ago!" Fry explained.

Leela did have trouble recalling what had previously happened. She felt ashamed for yelling at Fry when he had only tried to save her. Then Fry's words hit home. "What do you mean you can't tell me about the warning?" she asked. 

"It has something to do with you and I, that's all. I can't tell you because it might disrupt the future," Fry said. 

Leela looked shocked. "Fry, I'm sure you can tell me," she stammered. 

"Your decision has to remain unbiased or the future won't happen!" he argued. Leela was about to protest when she noticed that the ship was being pulled into a black hole.

She grabbed the ship's controls and tried to turn around, but it was too late. The ship had no hope of escaping its gravity. Fearing the end, Leela grabbed Fry and dragged him into the quarters. Leela beckoned for Fry to sit down. "Fry, the gravity will completely suck us in within the hour, so I want to get this out before we die," she said quietly. Fry looked at her questionably, obviously preparing himself for what was to come. "I'm sure you remember our time together when you had worms. Your sudden intelligence and newfound strength seduced me. Then, when you returned to normal to find out if I loved _you_, I showed you the door. I'm sorry, I didn't realize until later how I felt," she said.

Fry looked at her as he registered what she was saying. "I considered keeping the worms sometimes, because I knew you were happy with the new me," he said. 

"Fry, I realized later that that was you. You had all those things before and you still do. How do you think you managed to save me if you weren't able to shed your shell of idiocy? I want to make up for that night, by doing what I was going to do before," Leela stated. 

Leela's statement sank into Fry's head. "You mean you want to. .now?" Fry managed to say. 

Leela only nodded and said, "We're probably going to die, so I can't see a reason why not." Fry and Leela moved towards each other and.. .

"We interrupt this program to bring you breaking news. It seems the President and his wife are not married and Americans are… AHHH!" (A laser bolt shoots through the air and you can hear people saying, "We don't care! Turn the show back on!" The transmission returns to normal and you can see we missed the entire scene. Darn it all!

Fry and Leela are lying in bed, hugging each other, as time runs out. Red lights start to flash and warnings automatically turn on. They kiss just as they are pulled into the black hole and stretched to the limit. Then, everything was normal again. Fry and Leela looked at each other. They were alive? Leela ran to the controls and set a course for Earth. "Fry, we're the first ones to go through a black hole and live to tell the tale! We're going to be famous!" Leela exclaimed as they touched down to the Planet Express garage. (They had been thrown closer to Earth) 

"Uh, Leela, I hate to be a pessimist, but didn't the Planet Express building look newer when we left?" Fry asked.

Leela, upon walking outside, saw what Fry meant. The building looked like an old abandoned warehouse. They rushed to the door and pried it open and gasped at what they saw. Their faces were everywhere. In the immediate vicinity, they could see parks, statues, and a school dedicated to them. The air was clean and you could see teleport devices all around. "It's really beautiful isn't it?" asked a mysterious voice behind them. They turned around to face an almost exact duplicate of Fry with purple hair. "You should be proud, this is the future that you created!" exclaimed the man. "By the way Dad, it's safe to tell Mom now, the only way the D.T.F. can get rid of me now is by killing her," he explained. "I'm in there," he said pointing to Leela's stomach.

Leela looked shocked, this was her son? Fry looked equally shocked by this news as well. "It's okay Mom, or if you prefer, Leela, I'm what all this was about"

"You've been transported to the year 3051. I am your son, Leefry P. Fry. Although I appear to be 25, I'm actually 49. Your DNA somehow gives me eternal youth, but I can still die. Most of the advances in technology are because of me. My intellect has perplexed scientists, since like you Dad, my brain does not emit the delta brainwave." Fry looked confused, as well did Leela. Leefry, noting the confusion, explained "It's what allowed you to defeat the Brain Spawn that come along later, meaning it hasn't happened yet."

Finally, they were allowed to think about all this. Leela spoke first. "Are we stuck here?" 

"Well, time machines have been outlawed to prevent people from messing up the future. However, I have been tinkering around with something that uses a black hole to take you back. Your coming here was a freak accident. You were lucky to be thrown here. However, it will take at least a day to get the machine ready. You can look around, but keep your heads down."

Leela and Fry walked out the door to see the future they had created. As they walked they could see what a true utopia it really was. People were kind and courteous towards one another. A television playing in a store window showed a universal peace conference. Leela and Fry were amazed at how big an impact one little event made. They couldn't understand why anyone would want to destroy this peaceful world. They were about to find out as D.T.F. henchmen were surrounding them.

The henchmen inched forward as one of them said, "The boss wants to see you." 

"Well, I'm afraid we'll have to take a rain-check," Leela snapped. She quickly sprang into action with a kick in the head to the closest one. The henchmen were quick to respond with a punch to Leela's stomach, knocking the wind out of her. Fry became enraged after seeing this, and with a warlike cry, started to punch guys left and right. Leela watched this; surprised Fry was able to fight that well. She got up as quickly as she could and rejoined the fight. In minutes, they had clobbered them all.

Breathing hard, Leela looked up at Fry with an appreciative eye. Fry smiled back at her and helped her up. 

"I took some fighting lessons in school and seeing you in trouble brought them back to the surface." Leela smiled at him but her face turned into a look of surprise. Fry turned around and said, "Aw shit." There were a thousand more men holding guns pointed at them. They had no choice but to surrender as the men quickly encircled them.

Leela and Fry had no idea where they were going; all they knew was that being blindfolded and prodded onward really sucked. They finally seemed to stop and they were turned around and directed into what felt like a room. The blindfolds were removed and they saw their guess was correct. "The leader will be with you shortly," said the guard. He then locked the door and left. Fry looked around and saw that they were in a dim lit room with a long table and gigantic screen. Leela saw a whole shelf of holographic videos and walked over to it. She surveyed the collection with her eye and saw one that looked interesting entitled "My Secret Personal Agenda". 

"Fry, put this in the holodeck." Fry took the CD and inserted it into a futuristic looking DVD player. The table turned into a holographic projector and displayed the 3-D image of a man. Leela gasped and her face went into a mixture of shocked and not surprised looks. The projected image was an older, but still unfashionable Zapp Brannigan.

The image looked around as if checking to see if he was alone and when he was satisfied began to speak. "What I'm about to tell myself is so secret, not even my men know. The man I have enlisted to drive Leela and the orange mop-top apart is myself from the past. This way, I will not only destroy this wretched future, but I will possess Leela. Being older, I realized that she would never willingly come back to me unless the bad experience was wiped from her mind. I gave my younger self-verbal instructions on how to build the device and he has finally completed it. Victory will be mine!" The transmission ended.

Leela looked disgusted with this news. _Zapp just won't give up, will he?_ she thought to herself. She looked over to Fry, who at the moment was having his own mental conversation.

__

Aw man! So that's what the laser was for! I'm glad I got her away when I did, but this CD has just proven he won't give up. I am afraid for Leela. What's going to happen to us?

Just then the door opened and a shadowy figure edged into the room. When he was finally inside, you could see the actual Zapp with graying hair. 

Leela gritted her teeth as she delivered an ice cold, "Hello Zapp." Zapp appeared taken aback from Leela's icy tone. 

"Well, well Leela, let me just get rid of this moron, so you and I can talk privately." 

Leela ran to Fry and wrapped her arms around him. "Whatever you have to say to me, you can say to him too!" 

"Whatever you want, my dear Leela." Leela stared at him coldly.

Zapp walked to a chair and sat down to get comfortable. "Well, let me begin by saying your visit here was not all that unexpected." Leela and Fry looked at each other with confused faces. Zapp, noting this confusion, continued. "We have been keeping a close eye on your activities via this view screen tuned into your time. I must say, you have _very_ interesting activities in that space ship of yours. Leela let go of Fry and ran over to where Zapp was sitting. She started punching him senseless. 

"I'll teach you to watch our lives!" she screamed. Zapp managed to snap his fingers and the door burst open. D.T.F. soldiers poured in and surrounded Fry. 

"Me or your boyfriend? You won't see him hurt, will you?" Zapp asked.

Leela reluctantly gave up and pushed her way through the soldiers to get to Fry. Some soldiers grabbed her and dragged her back to the table. "Get rid of the boyfriend and hold her eye open so she can see his demise. The solder in front of Fry drew his weapon and pointed it at him. Leela looked on in horror. 

"LET ME GO!" she screamed as she struggled to get free. Fry watched this and became really enraged. Suddenly, everyone stopped and looked up in amazement. Leela had a surprised look on her face. Fry wondered what was wrong and looking down, he realized what the commotion was. He was five feet above the ground and floating in the air! 

Fry wasn't going to sit around trying to figure out how this happened. He quickly used his advantage and flew down to pick up Leela. He rose up higher to get out of reach of the soldiers. He then flew out the door with the soldiers chasing after him. Leela looked down on the beautiful scenery unfolding before them. They could see mountains, rivers, and a fast approaching city. They saw that the soldiers had given up and Fry landed. 

"How did you do that Fry?" Fry looked confused and in awe of his previous achievement. 

"I have no idea, all I know is I couldn't let them hurt you. I can't feel the power anymore, it must have been a one time only thing."

Leela smiled at Fry and threw her arms around him for a hug. "I was so scared I would lose you. I've never felt that terrified." 

Fry held her in his arms. "It's okay Leela, I'm still here and I'll be here for as long as you need me." Leela looked at Fry, her eye shining brightly, and she kissed him. Fry returned the kiss fully and then broke away as he realized what time it was. "We better go, we promised Leefry we'd be back at the end of the day." He and Leela started to walk back to town, but along the way, saw a taxi and rode the rest of the way.

Leefry watched impatiently as the two walked back into the building. "Where have you two been?" he asked. They told him every detail of the day's events and Leefry listened with interest, horror, and relief. "The reason Dad suddenly was able to fly is quite simple really. It was discovered that having relations with a member of the Cyclopean race gave the partner temporary powers that were released when the partner was angry, happy, or sad. The partner had to be having one of these emotions in the extreme for the powers to work."

Leefry then led them back to the ship where he explained the newly installed device. "It's already set with the correct information. All you have to do is pilot the ship back through the black hole. There is a catch though. Once you go through the black hole, you won't remember your trip here. You'll retain the memories of everything up to the point of entering the back hole. In your mind you will have escaped the gravity in time. So this is goodbye, for now."

Leela and Fry hugged their son and said a teary goodbye. Leefry said not to worry, they would meet again. They boarded the ship and a few minutes later, began to speed away. Leefry watched them go with a heavy heart. As they neared the black hole, 

Leela ran to Fry and hugged him. 

"Just in case we don't remember anything, I want you to know that I love you!" 

Fry smiled and said, "I know I'll remember that!" They held hands as they began to enter the black hole and disappear from the future.

When they came to, Fry smiled. He did remember Leela's last words, although he had trouble recalling anything else. Leela ran to the ship's controls and cheered. They had missed the black hole after all. She set a course for home and went to lie down for a bit. Fry felt a bulge in his jacket pocket. He reached in and pulled out a piece of paper. He read its contents to himself:

__

Dear Fry:

By the time you read this, you won't remember me. I wrote this because you need to know more to completely save the future. Leela never got over the memory of that night with Zapp and will eventually try to commit suicide. The attempt failed and left her brain dead. You must erase the offending memory to save her. You must also stop Zapp from trying to interfere with the future. Good luck to you. See you in about nine months.

Your loving son,

Leefry Philip Fry

Fry read the letter again in disbelief. It sounded too horrible to be true. Leela commit suicide? He knew he had to stop this from coming true. He would have to think of a way to later because they were approaching Earth. He got in the pilot's seat and started to descend towards the planet. He saw the PE building rush up before them and executed a perfect landing. He then went to the quarters to wake up Leela. He entered the room and watched her sleep for a few minutes. He then gently shook her awake. "Leela, we're home."

Leela awoke with a start, and then relaxed when she saw it was Fry. She got up and together they walked off the ship. Fry looked around to see if Zapp was still there. When he was finally satisfied, he walked Leela home. When they reached her apartment Leela turned and asked him to stay. Fry shook his head. "I have to find Bender and see if I can fix him." They kissed each other goodbye and went in their different directions. Leela unlocked the door to her apartment and stepped inside. She turned on the lights and gasped when she saw she was not alone. 

"Hello Leela," the familiar sounding voice said.

Fry had finally found Bender and had dragged him back to the apartment. When he opened him up, he saw that the inside looked like a mess. He sighed as he began to read his copy of "Robot Repairs for Dummies." Finally, after what seemed like hours, Fry put Bender back together again. He reinserted the brain and switched him back on. Bender sprang back to life. "That's the last time I help a human for free!" he snapped. 

Fry smiled at him. "I'm glad to hear you say that. Here's my bill." He handed Bender a piece of paper. 

Bender looked at it in shock. "I can't pay this, meatbag!" 

"You get what you pay for," Fry said smugly. Bender grumbled and handed him the money.

The next day at work, the entire crew sans Leela, sat around the meeting table while Hermes babbled on about the success they've been having and how they could do even better. Fry was worried that Leela hadn't shown up for work. It wasn't like her to be late without an excuse. Fry figured he'd call her later to see what was up. He then tried to listen to the lecture without much success. He eventually excused himself and went use the phone.

He dialed Leela's number and got "This number has been disconnected." Now he was even more worried. At that moment Hermes walked into the room. "What's wrong Fry, you look distressed." 

"Leela disconnected her phone. I know something's wrong. Can I leave work to go check on her?" 

"Of course Fry, I'm worried too." Hermes said. Fry thanked him and left the building as quickly as he could.

Fry, huffing and puffing, finally reached her apartment building. He ran up the flights of steps to her apartment. He hesitated on knocking when he heard a man's voice. The closed door muffled what he was saying, but Fry was thinking only about Leela. Then he noticed the door had not been closed correctly and he could push it open a little. He peered through the little space and was shocked at what he saw. There was Zapp Brannigan talking to Leela. Upon seeing that, he slammed the door open. "Get away from her, Zapp!" he shouted angrily. Zapp smiled wickedly, 

"On the contrary, mop-top, I believe the lady wants you to go. Tell him, my sweet." Leela then spoke the words that were like a thousands knives stabbed in his heart. 

"Fry, I never want to see you again." 

Fry looked at her with hurt in his eyes. "What did I do?" he whispered tearfully. Leela looked at him coldly. 

"I know you used me that night on the Nimbus. Zapp freed me from your influence and the pain you caused me for that night." 

Fry looked dumbfounded. "Leela, that never happened. It was Zapp who did that to you!" Fry finally caught on. He grabbed Zapp and threw him against the wall. "WHAT DID YOU DO TO HER?" Zapp just smiled and denied doing anything to her. Fry felt a laser gun put to his back. 

"Back off Fry, or I'll kill you." Fry did what Leela told him to. Fry saw a laser gun on the table and tried to think back to where he saw it before. Then it hit him. It was the laser that drove them to hiding in space.

"I'm sorry I have to do this Leela. I hope you understand." He quickly jabbed Leela in the stomach with his elbow, causing her to drop the gun. He whirled around and pushed her into a nearby closet and quickly shut the door. He propped a chair against the doorknob to prevent her from escaping. Zapp was running for the discarded gun. Fry remembered the weapon he had acquired from Michelle and reached for it. He then blasted the other gun and held Zapp at gunpoint. "Now, tell me what you did to her!" Fry demanded.

Zapp just snickered. "It doesn't matter anyway, you can't restore her previous memories. If you must know, that gun on the table erased a specific event and allowed me to fill in the blanks." 

Fry looked at him hatefully. "I'm sure I can replace the lost memories." 

"Highly doubtful, the machine is broken." 

"NOOOOO!" Fry screamed. He was stricken with grief. He had lost Leela forever. He looked at Zapp again with cold eyes. "You're lucky it's not my nature to kill people. I have a far worse idea in mind. Come with me!" he ordered 

He forced Zapp out the door. He made him walk all the way to the cryogenics lab. While they walked, Zapp insisted on teasing Fry about his lost future with Leela. "No matter what you do to me, Leela will always hate you!" he said. This only succeeded in making Fry madder. They finally reached the lab and Fry opened up the chamber next to his former girlfriend. 

"Get in!" he said. Zapp stepped inside mocking Fry. 

"Ooh! He's going to freeze me. I'm so scared." 

"You should be, because you're never going to wake up." Fry's words registered into Zapp's mind and he panicked. Fry shut the door and pushed the button that would seal the chamber until the end of time.

Fry watched him freeze into his permanent position, and then he broke down into sobs. He had really wanted to kill him, but he had figured that by the time Zapp thawed out, he couldn't change the future. He got up and walked back to Leela's apartment. She was still banging on the closet door when he walked in. He sat on the bed, trying to think of a way to help her remember. He looked out at the night sky and thought to himself. _I never get tired of watching those stars. Sometimes, if I look at them long enough, I get hypnotized. Wait a minute, that's it!_

Fry remembered seeing a program on hypnosis and its practical uses. He felt sure that was the way to help her. It should work since Zapp only messed up her memories a little. Unfortunately, in her current state, Leela wouldn't sit there long enough for it to work. He had to try though. He walked over to the closet and stood in front of the door. "Leela, if I let you out, will you sit still?" He heard a muffled agreement and opened the door. There stood a very angry Leela. "Now before you say anything, would you like to sit down?" She picked a chair and sat down. "Leela, I know you're mad at me, but you look stressed. All I want to do is give you a neck rub and then I'll go.

Leela looked at him coldly, but must of decided she needed the rub, because she nodded. Fry got up and walked around behind her. He started rubbing her shoulders, singing softly to himself. After a while, he noticed that she was starting to fall asleep and he softly encouraged her to. He watched as her eye closed and then began to guide her down to deeper sleep. He kept going until he was certain she was far enough to do what he needed to do. Then he began the ultimate trip down Leela's memory lane.

He sighed deeply before he began. He had to get her to tell what had previously happened. He figured he should start with the basic question: 

"Leela, can you hear me?"

"Yes"

"Leela I need you to go back in your mind to yesterday, when we parted company. I need you to tell me everything that happened."

"I entered the apartment and saw I wasn't alone. Zapp Brannigan was holding a strange laser gun. He fired and the next thing I know I'm extremely angry with you."

"Leela, I know it's hard, but you have to remember what he said while you were under the laser's effect."

"He told me that . . .you were the one who had gotten me drunk . . . and slept with me on the Nimbus. He told me you . . . had used a memory eraser on me to make me think that he did it."

"O.K. Leela, is that all he told you?"

"He also told me that I had . . . originally loved him."

"Leela, I want you to tell me something. Despite Zapp's influence, did you still love me?"

"Yes, I always had, from the moment we met."

"All right Leela, now when I count to three, you will wake up. You will remember everything you told me. You will not want to commit suicide because of anything Zapp did to you. I've taken care of him. He won't bother you anymore. Okay?"

"Okay"

"1…2…3!"

Leela's eye fluttered open and saw Fry standing there, smiling at her. She ran forward to Fry, sobbing. She threw her arms around Fry, almost knocking him over. "Oh my God, Fry I am so sorry. Zapp left a part of my real feelings in me so I could feel pain as I told you off. He had put the feelings in my subconscious so I couldn't express them." Fry held her close to him 

"It's okay Leela, I'll be here for as long as you need me." _Man, that sounds familiar! _Leela looked at him. 

"You'd be willing to be with me forever?" 

Fry looked at her. "Of course I am Leela!" 

"Thank you Fry." Leela looked in thought for a minute. "By the way, what did you do to Zapp?" 

Fry smiled and said "Come on, I'll show you."

After a brisk walk, they arrived at the Applied Cryogenics building. Fry led Leela up the stairs and told her to close her eye. When she was allowed to open it again, she was treated to a frozen Zapp Brannigan. She walked up to it to get a better view. When she was satisfied, she walked back to Fry. "Not so tough now Zapp, are you?" she taunted. She sat down and started writing on a piece of paper she had found. Fry looked at her questionably. Then she got up, walked over to the chamber, and stuck the note over Zapp's face. Fry started laughing hysterically. The note said: DO NOT OPEN; WORLD CLASS JERK INSIDE.

They walked the streets of New New York hand in hand. They viewed the city with a new perspective. It really was beautiful. They decided that they would head back to the apartment. When they got there, they sat on the bed. Fry laughed to himself. "Can you believe this is the first time in two days that we haven't been chased, escaped a black hole, narrowly escaped death, or been brainwashed?" Leela nodded and agreed. She placed her head on Fry's shoulder and sighed. "What's wrong?" Fry asked. 

"You've always been special to me, but it took these past two days to make me realize how much I loved you."

Fry put his arm around her and she settled against it. Fry chuckled to himself again. 

"What's so funny?" she asked. 

"You've told me how much you love me, but I haven't told you how I feel about you." 

Leela smiled and said "Now's a good time." 

"Well, this whole thing started with my old girlfriend. When she was thawed out, I didn't think about the past, I thought about you. When she threatened to kill me, I only went along with her because I wanted to be able to live to tell you how I felt. I love you, Leela, and I always have." He got up and knelt down before her. "I want to say this before we get interrupted. Leela, we've been through a lot in the past two days. It has felt like we've lived an entire life in those two days. I realized that I really do want spend the rest of my life with you. Leela, will you marry me?" He brought out a small box containing a diamond ring. 

Leela's eye shone brightly as she said "Yes I will Fry, I'll marry you."

Fry hugged her as he gave her the ring. Leela had never felt so happy in her entire life. "Let's turn on some music," Fry suggested. Leela walked over and turned on the radio. There was a slow song playing. "Would you care to dance?" Fry offered. Leela nodded and Fry took her hand, pulling her towards him gently. 

"When do you want to get married?" Leela asked. 

Fry shrugged and said, "How about in two to four months? These things take time to plan." 

"I know what you mean. We have to think of who to invite and where we're going to get married, etc." Leela looked in thought for a minute. 

"Fry, I think we should get our blood tested." 

"I don't think I have any sexually transferred viruses, but you're right."

The next day, they went to a blood-testing lab. Fry didn't particularly care for needles, but he was doing it for Leela, so he could stand them. They were led into different rooms and given shots. Leela could hear a yelp from Fry's room and couldn't help but giggle. They sat in the waiting room while the scientists analyzed the blood. Soon they were summoned back into the lab. "Well, Mr. Fry, your blood tests show there's nothing to worry about." Then the doctor turned to Leela. "Let me be the first to say congratulations, Miss Leela. You're going to be a mother and your companion is the father. Leela gasped, tears of joy falling from her eye. Fry couldn't believe he was actually going to be a father. 

The next day at work, Leela and Fry said they had an announcement to make. Fry went first. "Recently, I asked Leela to marry me and she accepted." Cheers erupted from the table and Bender gave some money to Hermes. 

Then Leela stood up to deliver her news. "I'm having a baby and Fry's the father." More cheers erupted from everybody.

****

Four months later

Fry looked nervous as he fixed his tie. Today was the moment he and Leela had been waiting for. He walked out of the bathroom and went to the room where he first came to the future and met Leela, the cryogenics lab. He thought it was fitting to be married here where it all began. The room was pretty much the way he had first found it. Only their co-workers were there. Then he turned as the music started and the bride entered the room. Fry thought she looked beautiful in that white dress. She smiled at him as she took her place besides Fry.

The usual ceremony took place, until the priest told the crowd that Leela and Fry had written their own vows and would now say them to each other.

Leela spoke first. "Fry, since the moment you were thawed out, I always had a soft spot for you. You were the one who showed me the joy in choosing your career, instead of it being chosen for you. It is because of you that I was able to see the universe in a new light. I know that you are my soul-mate and I will always love you."

Fry was close to tears as he struggled to say his vows. "Leela, back in the 20th century, I had a life that was going nowhere fast. I had always dreamed of going into space, but instead got a job as a pizza delivery boy. Now here in the 31st century, I'm still a delivery boy, but I get to go to different planets. I also met you. I may have shown you a lot of things, but you taught me how to survive in the future. I'd probably be dead if it wasn't for you. I know I had a family, but now I don't. Sometimes I wonder why I deserved to outlive my family. I want to give you the family you never had and I want a family so I don't have to feel guilty about surviving. I love you more than anything in my entire life and I will love you forever."

Fry looked around and saw that everyone was crying. Bender said he was just leaking fluid. The priest, in between crying, pronounced them man and wife.

****

Five months later

"Push Mrs. Fry, it's almost out!" Minutes later, the doctor handed Leela a baby boy that had a little patch of purple hair on his head that stuck out like Fry's. Fry held his son in his arms like he would never let go. 

Leela smiled at him and laughed. "How about Leroy for a name?" she asked. 

Fry said that he liked the name, but he wanted to be creative. "How about Leefry Philip Fry?" he asked. Leela laughed and said it was a good name.

****

Fast forward to the year 3051

Leefry smiled as he watched his birth take place on October 16, 3001. He sighed happily. Everything was as it should be.

****

The End

Futurama characters used in this story belong to Fox and Matt Groening. I do however lay claim to Leefry Philip Fry and the D.T.F. 


End file.
